Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Utah Gov.'s Medicaid Expansion Plan Loses Momentum
Gov. Gary Herbert's trimmed-down plan for expanding Medicaid appears to have hit a dead end at the state Capitol. Hours after the Republican governor's plan earned key approval in the state Senate, Republican House Speaker Greg Hughes said Wednesday afternoon that the GOP-dominated House will not consider the governor's plan because it has no support. (Price, 2/26)
Lawmakers who want to close Nebraska's health care coverage gap are taking a new approach after two previous attempts to expand Medicaid failed. Sen. Kathy Campbell presented her Medicaid "redesign" bill Wednesday to a legislative committee, saying it would help the state uncover more efficient ways to provide health coverage while giving Nebraska officials flexibility to design a state-specific plan. (Shulte, 2/26)
An Oregon judge has ordered technology giant Oracle Corp. to continue hosting Oregon's Medicaid health insurance system for low-income Oregonians even after the company's contract expires this weekend. Marion County Circuit Judge Courtland Geyer ruled Wednesday that Oracle should host Medicaid for another year. He granted the preliminary injunction until February 2016. (Wozniacka, 2/26)
Meanwhile, on the topic of health exchanges -
Even though MNsure officials saw countless technological red-flags in the lead-up to the Oct. 1, 2013 launch of the online health insurance exchange, Gov. Mark Dayton wasn’t alerted to those issues until a few weeks before the website opened for businesses. (Richert, 2/25)
